The Thin Blue Line - on hiatus
by Marlena Deux
Summary: Bullock gets a new partner after Gordon's reassignment despite his best efforts. Sonia Alcana is as bright and bubbly as Harvey is worn and jaded. Forging a reluctant friendship out of sheer need, sparks fly. Future romance. Bullock/Alcana.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Harvey Bullock and Sonia Alcana are owned by DC Comics and the creators of Gotham, not me. I only own the few paltry OCs needed to flesh out the story.

Warning/Note: Sonia Alcana in the DC Batman universe is one of the versions of Batwoman, not in this story. She was also Harvey's partner and that's what I'm going with in this story. Eventually there will be romance between Harvey and Sonia, but I'm working my way to it slowly. When the romance starts, I'll be changing the rating as is appropriate. Please review if you read the story.

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><p>The pounding, relentless rain made a wreck of Sonia's hair. In the short distance from the cab to the interior of GCPD headquarters her neatly arranged chocolate curls had been transformed into a soggy, frizzy, and dripping mess. Not to mention her makeup ran and her ivory Ralph Lauren blouse – the one she worked extra shifts to purchase – was now completely sheer so that she looked more like a stripper than a candidate for detective in the homicide division.<p>

Her new pumps were full of water and made a dirty _sucking_ sound with every step.

Embarrassment didn't begin to cover the emotion Sonia was feeling.

On top of looking like she'd spent the night sleeping off a hangover on skid row, she was five minutes late to her meeting with Captain Essen. She ground her teeth and ran through the packed squad room holding her soaked jacket shut and making obscene _squish-suck_ sounds with every step she took.

Sonia kept her head down as she approached the glass door of the captain's office. Being seen in such a sorry ass state was bad enough if the people were strangers, but she was a uniform and at any moment someone could recognize her. Sonia almost didn't dare knocking.

"Come in," Essen called.

She opened the door and slid inside; leaning against the glass for a moment.

Captain Sarah Essen was a beautiful woman in her mid-forties with glossy onyx curls, rich dark eyes, and smooth, deep caramel-colored skin. She dressed as neat as a pin. Her reputation was one of fairness, but also not taking any crap. Essen hadn't risen to the rank of captain in Gotham by being a Pollyanna Pureheart.

Sonia pasted a large smile on her face as Captain Essen looked up from her paper work.

"You are late, Alcana, and that's hardly the way to start…" Essen's eyes grew large and her brows drew together as she studied Sonia like a germ under a microscope. "What in the hell happened to you?"

"I was stuck in traffic down by 5th and Lamont," Sonia began. "I'm so sorry, I'm not normally tardy."

Essen leaned forward; clearly struggling not to laugh. "Didn't you watch the weather report? Good heavens, you're soaked." She gestured toward a chair like she was conducting an orchestra. "Have a seat, Officer Alcana."

Sonia _squished_ her way across the office floor and gratefully sank into the indicated chair. She pushed a sopping mess of hair from her eyes and fought the desire to wiggle a finger in her ear to clear out the water that had dripped inside. "Thank you, Captain Essen."

Opening a file, Essen briefly skimmed it before looking Sonia in the eyes. "Sonia Alcana, age thirty-three, single with no dependents. Father, deceased. Mother, remarried and living in Atlanta. You grew up in Gotham and graduated from Gotham University with a degree in sociology, very nice." She smiled and clasped her hands together on the desk. "I studied your record with GCPD and it is flawless. No bad reports of any kind in your personnel file. I also spoke with Hank Llewelyn at the police academy and your lieutenant downtown and they both highly recommended you for the job. You've been on the force now for nearly nine years as a uniform patrol officer and this is the first time you took the qualification test for detective. Why didn't you try for detective before? You passed with flying colors."

"I was happy with patrol," Sonia answered honestly. "I joined to help people and I felt like I was in a position that did the most good. This past year, I started feeling like I wanted to push myself further so I took the test."

Tapping her fingers on the desk, Essen studied Sonia closely. "This position isn't easy, Alcana. You are going to be dealing with scumbags in and out of the GCPD. There is ass kissing galore and you have to be able to get along with those in authority no matter how distasteful, and I assure you it will be. Can you do that?"

Sonia wondered for a brief moment if she could. Honesty, unvarnished and at times cruel, had been part of her for so long that swallowing it down to kiss some politician's rosy red ass made her queasy. The job she wanted wasn't going to come around again for a long time. GCPD was under severe budget constraints so that officers were lucky if they even received a raise – never mind a promotion.

It was crunch time.

"I think I can," Sonia replied. "But I'm not going to lie; I'm not a natural born brown noser."

"Are you aware of what happened to your predecessor?" The question hung in the air like the sound of breaking glass; cutting and unpleasant.

She nodded. "Yes ma'am. Detective Gordon was reassigned to Arkham."

Essen's lips drew into a frown. "I would be assigning you as Detective Harvey Bullock's junior partner. Do you know Detective Bullock?"

"I met him once a long time ago. I doubt he would remember me."

"What did you think of him?"

Sonia smiled. "He was a very interesting man. I didn't dislike him if that's what you're asking."

"He can be… abrasive," Essen advised in a warning tone of voice. "After dealing with Gordon, he may not be welcoming to you. I _need_ the two of you to get along and learn to work together. Despite his appearance and mannerisms, Detective Bullock is a fine man and a great cop."

"I understand, Captain Essen."

She stood and held out her hand. "I'm going to take a chance on you, Alcana. Don't make me regret it."

Sonia gained her feet and pumped Essen's hand enthusiastically. "Thank you so much, Captain. I promise I'll do my best."

Essen smiled and came around the desk. "I can't ask for any more than your best. Whatever you do, I suggest you don't use the term 'tardy' in Harvey's presence. He has a strange sense of humor and you don't want to be on the receiving end." She looked out her office window and smirked. "Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Let's get you in the saddle."

Sonia was horrified to be seen looking like a strung out junkie stumbling into work. Without any choice, she obediently followed Captain Essen to a bank of desks only a few feet beyond her office. At the far end, only one was occupied. The desks in question were situated in the bend of railings separating this floor from the general chaos of the squad room below.

The man sitting at the desk had a head of shaggy reddish-gold hair generously interspersed with white in his beard. He was roughly bearded – as though he shaved or trimmed his facial hair just often enough not to become an irredeemable slob. He had the same oval face and thin lips she remembered and the same strong hands and arms too.

Bullock wore a wrinkled white dress shirt with his sleeves pushed half way up his forearms; exposing a goodly amount of hair that gleamed bronze in the light. His brown leather holster hugged his shoulders and a deep blue tie dangled from around his neck like he'd spent most of the morning tugging at it.

A pair of reading glasses perched on the end of his nose as he perused a file.

"Harvey," Essen began. "This is your new partner, Detective Sonia Alcana. I told her you are going to take good care of her. She was a uniform under Lieutenant Moser."

Bullock never looked up. "Great… another partner. This is just what I need to make my week complete." The obvious sarcasm was so pronounced and biting that Sonia was startled. "What's next? I'll end up as Mayor James shoe-shine boy?"

"Don't be an ass, Harvey." Essen turned to Sonia with an apologetic smile and a shrug before marching straight back to her office and shutting the door.

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><p>She stood in place for fear of irritating the man any further.<p>

After a few minutes dedicated to ignoring her presence; Bullock suddenly looked at her over the rim of his reading glasses. His eyebrows surged high and his mouth curled into a sour smirk. "Are you waiting for an engraved invitation? If so, you're gonna be waiting a long time, sister." He jabbed his pen in the direction of the desk across from him. "Take a load off."

Sonia crossed the space; her shoes making _suck-suck-sucking_ noises all the way. Cheeks burning, she deliberately turned away from his intense scrutiny.

"What happened to you?"

She cleared her throat. "I got stuck in the rain."

"Thank the Holy Ghost you weren't rolling in off a hangover." He paused. "That's my job."

Sonia looked his way and he was staring at her.

"I'm kidding," Bullock pronounced gravely.

She merely arched her brows.

He pointed at a fat stack of files on her blotter. "I've been a little behind since Gordon got his ass reamed and demoted. Would you mind logging those in for me? Kringle in records takes care of the filing."

Sonia shrugged. "Sure, but my security level hasn't been upgraded yet. Let me try my sign on and see what happens." She turned to the computer and began pecking away; the feeling of being stared at gnawed at her. "Yes?"

She was right; Bullock was staring. He rubbed his chin before resting back in his chair. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"We met a while back," Sonia replied as she turned her attention back to the computer. When the computer allowed her to log in, she hooted in triumph. "Yes, go me! Finally something has gone right today."

Bullock grunted before turning his attention back to the file in front of him. "Preaching to the choir."

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><p>The morning consisted of fielding phone calls from witnesses, murder victim's family members, the Gotham D.A.'s office, and various other members of the GCPD. On top of the calls, Sonia busily logged in Bullock's overdue files.<p>

By lunch, her new desk was awash in sticky notes from all the calls.

The man across from her was staring again. "Break time. I have one rule and I expect you to follow it without fail."

Sonia pushed her now dry frizz back from her eyes. "What's the rule?"

Bullock stood and rubbed his hands together. "When we are at lunch, we observe the lunch hour as our god given right to relax. No calls, unless it's the Captain. Get it?"

"Got it," she replied, standing. "Where are we going?"

He grabbed his jacket and shrugged into it. "There's a little Greek place around the corner. They serve the best gyros in town. Are you game?"

Sonia nodded and set her computer to lock. She traveled light – her identification, gun, money clip, cell phone, cherry chapstick, and keys. No makeup, no superfluous items of any kind made it on her person.

After a few hours, her shoes had dried enough to simply squeak.

Detective Bullock was quiet as they entered the small restaurant. He smiled and removed his hat as a heavy older woman with greying hair and laughing eyes approached. "Madame Makris, nice to see you again. This is my new partner, Detective Alcana."

The woman hugged him and patted his back with thumps Sonia reckoned had to be painful. "Harvey, it's so good to see you. Come in and sit wherever you like. Lunch is on the house." Madame Makris turned in Sonia's direction and grinned. "You are a lucky young woman to have such a nice boy for a partner. He is the best policeman in the entire city." With that pronouncement, she pinched Harvey's cheek before waddling away.

Sonia smiled and Bullock's face burned.

He cleared his throat. "Madame Makris' son was accused of murder and I helped clear him." Bullock gestured toward some booths across the room. "Let's take a load off."

Once seated, he handed her a menu before perusing his own. "The files are all logged in," he noted in a conversational tone. "You don't fool around, I like that. Thanks for pitching in right off the bat."

Sonia glanced at him over the menu and discovered his deep blue eyes were doing the same. "No problem. That's what a partner is for – to have your back."

Bullock lowered his menu. "I _know_ I've seen you somewhere before. Can you clue me in?"

"The mystery is driving you crazy isn't it?" Sonia teased; holding her menu firmly in place.

He reached out and pushed her menu down with a finger. "What can I say? Curiosity is a hazard of the job."

"Picture me in a patrol uniform," she suggested.

Bullock's eyes narrowed and he shook his head. "No, uh-uh. I would have recognized you right off the bat if we met on the job. I have a feeling it was somewhere else."

Sonia shrugged and he released a groan as the waitress arrived.

The minute the server took their order and left, he leaned forward with a slight grin. "Come on; throw me a bone, Alcana. Take pity on an old man."

"You aren't that old," she retorted with a smile. "I much prefer you guess."

A shadow fell across the table and they both looked up in unison.

Two tall, exceptionally well-dressed people were hovering over them wearing unpleasant smirks. One was a bald African-American male and the other was a humorless looking Latina woman. Neither made any comment and just continued staring.

Sonia cast a look toward Bullock.

He raised an eyebrow. "Lucky me. Let me guess, you're missing Jimmy? He's at Arkham if you feel the need to harass him."

"I wouldn't be such a wise-ass," the man advised.

"Especially in your case," the woman smirked. "We're watching you _very_ closely. Essen isn't always going to back you and one day – your butt is going to be in a sling."

The man looked in Sonia's direction. "Keep your nose clean, Alcana, working with this one."

Bullock's face grew an unflattering shade of brick red, but his lips remained tightly pressed together.

Without another word, the pair left as quietly as they had arrived.

Sonia jerked a thumb toward the door. "Who are those guys?"

"They are a pair of backstabbing traitors looking to nail their brothers and sisters at the GCPD." He shook his head and rubbed his chin. "Crispus Allen and Renee Montoya. Keep as far away from that pair as humanly possible."

Nine years on the force had given Sonia a pretty good sense of honest and dishonest people. Harvey Bullock was falling into the honest category – the fact she met him years earlier probably prejudiced her view of him.

"How is Detective Dix? I assume you still keep in touch with him?" Sonia asked lightly.

Bullock's eyes widened. "You know Dix?" Dix had been Bullock's senior partner for almost twelve years before _The Goat_ case that rocked Gotham's elite and left Dix confined to a wheel chair.

She shrugged as the returning waitress set down their plates and coffee. Once the young woman was gone, Sonia spoke. ""I met him many years ago. He was a very good cop. I'm sorry for what happened to him." The smell of the food made her mouth water and she tucked in without further ado.

The man across from her ate in silence though his eyes held a thoughtful gaze every time she happened to look his way.

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><p>It was well after eight when Sonia finally dragged herself through her apartment door. She was stone cold worn out, but the promotion was worth every moment of stress. Essen had assigned her a detective's badge and had her sign a slew of paperwork after lunch which kept her in the Captain's office most of the afternoon.<p>

When she emerged, Bullock was clocking out and she was faced with the numerous sticky notes covering her desk. _'Oh shit,'_ she muttered; provoking a chuckle from her partner as he headed out the door. Another few hours had seen the elimination of all but a stubborn few of the notes.

If there was one thing that drove her crazy, it was disorganization! Give her the nuttiest perp in Gotham any day over a messy desk. Sonia remembered her father lecturing her: _'Disorganized surroundings equal a disorganized mind. Keep up with the everyday tasks and you'll always have time for what's important.'_

Sonia sagged against the door and released a long, deep sigh. "Home at last."

The apartment was modern, clean, and located in a solidly middle class neighborhood on Gotham's east side. She shared the space with a roommate as well as the related bills. Though the walls were stark white as dictated by the landlord, they had decorated with colorful artwork and a fuzzy hot pink throw rug over the cold grey concrete floor.

She tossed her keys in the large candy dish by the door.

The complete silence told her that her roommate was out for the evening. Kathy Duquesne was as boisterous as Sonia was reserved. Most people who knew them were shocked by the fact the pair shared an apartment and hadn't murdered one another.

Still full from lunch, Sonia headed for the bathroom.

She stood under the hot spray feeling each of her muscles loosen in turn. The man she was assigned to work with entered her mind. Harvey Bullock was vastly different from his younger self – not just in looks, but attitude.

He seemed angrier and so very world weary. Physically, he was, of course, no longer the handsome, bronze-haired, buff young man who ran headlong into a raging fire to save her. He still was good-looking, but the beard and the creased suit and uncut hair gave him a rough, almost harsh edge he hadn't possessed twenty-one years ago.

Back then, Harvey Bullock was a patrol officer in a neatly pressed, crisp deep blue uniform boasting a warm, friendly smile that made his eyes sparkle.

The sparkle was gone; replaced with suspicion.

Sonia was saddened to see the decline. She had spent four hours, the longest of her life, with Harvey Bullock and she had never once forgotten the man. Her father, Alfonso Alcana, owned a small jewelry boutique in a trendy neighborhood with a lovely apartment overhead. When he refused to pay the local thugs for protection, they retaliated by firebombing the store.

'_Don't be afraid, kiddo,'_ Officer Bullock held her against his side; a blanket around both their shoulders. _'Firemen in this city are the best. They'll find your dad.'_

She remembered clinging to his waist with her singed face pressed against his ribs.

Tears formed in her eyes and Sonia blinked them away. The firemen had found her father – his charred remains were at the back of the building.

Sonia's legs gave way as the old memories inundated her. She let her body slide down until she was seated in the tub with the hot water beating her skin mercilessly. Only once the water turned cold did she find the strength to move.

Hours later, tucked into her small bed, Sonia stared at the ceiling and wondered if she had made the right decision at all. Maybe she should have left Gotham when her mother had… attended college elsewhere.

_Maybe… maybe… maybe…_


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for reviewing: Persephoniii, red2013, pepperlandgrl, and Lana

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><p>Essen sighed as Harvey lingered near her door before finally rapping his knuckles against the doorframe. "This wouldn't be about a case, would it?"<p>

He puckered his lips, stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. "Uh… no."

She threw down her pen and folded her arms over her stomach. "I suppose you're in here to complain about your new partner. I seem to recall a similar scenario with Gordon." Essen shook her head. "For the love of God, I beg you to give me a week… just a week before you start lodging complaints."

Harvey dropped into a chair and stared Essen straight in the eye. "Do you see what Alcana is up to out there?"

Shaking her head, Essen glanced out the window.

Sonia Alcana was a petite, thin young woman with a headful of chocolate-colored curls artfully arranged around her face. She favored neutral colors; today her pantsuit was beige, yesterday she wore cinnamon-brown. At the moment, Alcana was on her feet rummaging through an evidence box with diligence.

"I see your partner hard at work while you, on the other hand, are in here with me… complaining… yet again."

Harvey nodded; his face suffused with pure suspicion. "Yes! That's right! Alcana is out there working a cold case! Yesterday, she helped me with my backlog of case files and _voluntarily_ answered the phone. She even followed up on the calls she took and stayed late to do it."

Sarah Essen had known Harvey Bullock for so many years she hesitated to number them for fear of feeling her age. In all the time she and Bullock had known one another, Essen had never seen him rag on someone for attempting to help him. Well, aside from Gordon and she pardoned him on that count because Gordon was a little hard to take.

She pursed her lips and arched her brows. "Harvey, you must be the first cop in the history of the whole damn world to bitch about a partner trying to do right by you. Honestly, you sound like you've been sucking on the Kool-Aid bottle filled with _paranoia_." He flinched as her voice grew in volume. "Do you know how many people I interviewed for Gordon's position?"

He shook his head; eyes pinned to her desk.

"Fifty-nine," she clarified loudly before calming. "Because of Gordon and his idiocy, I was limited by Mayor James to a candidate pool strictly from the Gotham force. Let me tell you, half the interviewees dropped out when they heard you would be their partner. Thirty people refused more money because your name came up. Of the remaining twenty-nine candidates, fifteen had write ups in their file for corruption or brutality or both. Out of the last fourteen, Alcana was the only one with a clean personnel file and who seemed excited by the prospect of working with you."

A muscle was working in Harvey's jaw.

Essen sighed. "I'm not trying to ride your ass, Harvey. You need a partner to help you – that's just a cold, hard fact. I picked badly last time and I'm sorry for not reassigning Gordon when you asked me to. I'm open to taking care of any problems that genuinely pop up, but at least give Alcana a chance."

He thrust a hand through his hair.

"She's a hard worker; that seems like a plus." Essen sighed. "Was she disrespectful yesterday or this morning?"

Harvey grunted before finally answering, "No."

"Did she refuse any order you gave her?"

He sank back in the uncomfortable chair; rubbing a hand across his face. "No."

Essen shook her head. "I can't reassign a detective for being helpful and treating you with respect, Harvey."

Rising to his feet, Harvey paced back and forth in front of her desk. "I'm telling you something is off with her – I can almost smell it. I've seen Alcana somewhere before and when I asked about it she refused to tell me." He threw his hands up in the air. "I know something's rotten in Denmark."

"You need a vacation," Essen announced. "As soon as Alcana is trained, I'm giving you _mandatory_ time off."

He gaped at her like a fish. "What? You can't…"

"Oh yes I can," she cut him off and wagged a finger in his direction. "The fact is you have more vacation hours accumulated over the years than any detective in _homicide_. I'm going to see you use at least three weeks. I should have done this a long time ago."

Harvey simply spun on his heel and marched back to his desk.

Essen released a deep sigh. "Oh my, my, my."

* * *

><p>Alcana was deep into her evidence box when Harvey dropped into his chair. She looked up at him with a bright smile. "I brought you a cronut. You went straight into Captain Essen's office so I put it on your desk."<p>

Harvey was now in a truly bad mood. Being told off by his supervisor was bad enough, but on the way back to his desk a little prick of guilt infected him. So far, Alcana had been nothing but decent to him; beyond decent if he was to be completely honest.

He was well aware most of the GCPD respected him, many outright feared him, but to be told half the job candidates quit the process because his name came up was like a slap to the face.

Harvey had worked his ass off for the GCPD and _bled_ for this city. He lost the woman he was going to marry and more than most people could contemplate in the course of doing his job. Sure, there were plenty of times over the years he played dirty pool to get results, but if you wanted to catch the bad guys you had to think like them.

"What in the blazes is a cronut?" He groused eyeing the pastry sitting on the edge of his desk with distrust.

Alcana's delicate eyebrows surged up in a display of surprise. "Seriously? You've never had a cronut?"

Harvey stared her down. "Would I ask if I'd eaten one?"

The olive skin of Alcana's cheeks turned bright pink. She looked down into the evidence box. "No, probably not," she muttered. "A cronut is a cross between a doughnut and a croissant." Alcana began rifling through papers. "A lot of people find them to be delicious."

"You'll find I'm a traditionalist of sorts," Harvey informed her as he picked up the pastry. "Alvarez! Incoming cronut!" He tossed the morsel over the rail which Alvarez barely caught.

"What the hell man?!" Alvarez shouted as a poof of powdered sugar exploded across the front of his dark suit.

His partner's dark eyes flickered in the direction the cronut went sailing before returning resolutely to the box. She chewed her bottom lip and continued working like he wasn't there at all.

If there was one thing that pissed Harvey off more than being reprimanded it was being ignored.

Harvey leaned forward and stared at her pointedly. "Do you have something you'd like to say, Alcana?"

She shook her head.

The tiny pinprick of guilt was growing, widening until it was a raw, angry wound eating away at Harvey as he watched Alcana work. Maybe he was paranoid and _maybe_ she was completely innocent, but the best way to find out was to do some digging of his own.

He stood and pulled on his jacket. "I need to meet with a source."

Alcana straightened and looked him in the face. "Do you want me to go with you?"

Harvey took a moment to study the young woman across from him. In her early thirties, a heart-shaped, rather plain face with a thin, straight nose, generous rosy lips, and a complexion marred by a wine-colored birthmark staining her throat just below her right jaw. She did have thick, gleaming curls that were half-way attractive compared to the rat's nest she boasted the previous day. Alcana had a nice enough smile that was a little too happy for Harvey's taste – it was unnatural in this city.

She reminded him, strangely enough, of Tinkerbelle with her height deficiency and lithe body.

All in all, he found her lacking in the looks department which was just fine by him. The last thing he needed was a partner that gave him a stiffy every time he looked in her direction. Harvey didn't mind working with women, he just preferred the unattractive variety. He had a dick and despite his best efforts; the head downstairs did his fair share of the thinking.

Harvey wasn't going to bother getting chummy with mystery girl. He had a feeling she was going to be gone soon enough after he investigated. "Nah," he donned his hat. "Stay here and finish up what you're doing."

Alcana nodded and continued rummaging through the evidence box.

The fleeting feeling he knew her from somewhere was overwhelming and annoying.

He headed out; his expression set with a grim smile.

* * *

><p>"Well, well," Dix stated sarcastically. "Isn't this becoming a regular occurrence? Where's your partner?"<p>

Harvey lingered in the solarium door; his hat pressed to his chest. "Gordon has been reassigned to Arkham."

The older man rolled his eyes before dropping a puzzle piece on the table. "Do you have this effect on all the people assigned to work with you or are Gordon and I the lucky few?"

Dix had never been what Harvey would term _polite_ and he was less so since the Goat incident ten years earlier. He felt a deep, nagging sense of guilt that the old man had ended up in a wheelchair. If Harvey had only waited for the damned backup like Dix told him…

A muscle clenched painfully in his jaw, but Harvey forced himself to smile anyway. "I like to work alone, Dix. Besides, Gordon was all gung-ho to try and revamp the system. We both know what happens when you buck those at the top."

The old man snorted. "Gordon sounds like someone I used to know… _Harvey_." Dix stared at him. "Why are you here? We both know you aren't enamored with social calls."

Harvey entered the room and took a seat across from his former partner. "I need your help."

Dix rolled his eyes. "At this rate, the GCPD is going to need to reinstate my pay. What is it this time?"

Harvey cleared his throat. "There is this girl…"

"As I recall," Dix stated tartly. "You _never_ needed my help with the ladies."

"It's not what you think…"

The old man laughed. "Bullshit! With you, Harvey, it was always _exactly_ what I was thinking."

Harvey could feel his face burning under Dix's gaze. "I'm not trying to dick her!"

Suddenly, Dix stopped laughing and a contemplative look crossed his face. "Hells bells. That would be new. What's going on?"

"Is the surname Alcana familiar to you?" Harvey mentally had his fingers crossed. If Dix had no clue, he was going to have to swallow the fact his partner had a leg up on him.

He scratched his chin and nodded. "Yeah, I remember a fella named Alcana. The case was, oh, at least twenty years ago if not a little more. You don't remember? As I recall, you were the patrol officer on scene, Harvey."

Harvey normally had a damn good memory… he had nothing on tap. "I'm drawing a blank on the name."

Dix snorted. "I'm not entirely surprised. You snorted so much smoke running into the building the paramedics were shocked you were still standing. Alcana was a Spanish fella from… Madrid, I think… he opened this ritzy little jewelry shop on Eveningside Drive. Nice neighborhood. He didn't want to pay protection to Johnny Santangelo." The old man shrugged. "I know you remember how Santangelo dealt with his more stubborn marks."

Images of burned out buildings and beaten corpses filled Harvey's mind. He swallowed thickly. "Yeah, I do. Funny, I can't remember the names, but I do remember the fire."

"Between the smoke you swallowed and that brat hanging off your leg, I think it's safe to say you suffered a case of shock. I'll never forget the look on your face when the firefighters hauled out Alcana's corpse. You were so worried his kid would see; you picked her up and rode to the hospital in the ambulance with her."

The pieces snapped together in Harvey's mind like a finely designed puzzle._ Sonia Alcana was the kid._ "Where was her mother?"

A disgusted laugh escaped Dix's throat. "Mrs. Alcana was _entertaining_ her rich boyfriend uptown the night of the fire. It took me three friggin' hours to find her and get her ass to the hospital. Good-looking broad with the best tits I ever seen on a woman. It's sad she was a two-timing cheat."

Harvey suddenly felt very small and like the world's biggest asshole bar none. The hurt look on Alcana's face when he tossed away the cronut was picture perfect in his mind's eye.

"You okay?" Dix asked with a penetrating glare. "You turned pale as snow."

He released a tired sigh. "I'm an ass."

"No arguments here," the old man agreed. "I've been telling you that for years."

Harvey flashed a sneer at his former partner and stood. "So nice seeing you, Dix. Next time, I'll bring milk and cookies."

Dix smirked. "Blow it out your ear, Bullock."

Shoving his hat on his head, Harvey turned on his heel and left.

* * *

><p>The evidence box was gone when Harvey returned and so was Alcana. He took off his hat and prepared to sit when he noticed something strange on his desk. A small, bright yellow napkin was just off to the side of his phone and sitting in the center of the napkin was a perfect powdered jelly doughnut.<p>

Alvarez was just coming from Essen's office.

"Hey, have you seen Alcana?"

The taller man rolled his eyes. "She's at lunch." Alvarez waved a file in Harvey's direction. "By the way, I had to go home and change so thanks _dillweed_."

Embarrassed, Harvey barked: "Yeah, well screw you too _putz_!"

"Detective Bullock?"

Nygma's voice so close to Harvey's ear nearly sent him into orbit. Startled, he turned and leveled a dead glare on the younger man. "Damn it, Ed! How many times do I have to ask you _not_ to sneak up on me?"

Edward Nygma's face was bathed a deep red. "Sorry, I thought you heard me talking to Colton."

Harvey heaved a weary sigh. "I'm a little on edge today, Ed. What can I do for you?"

"I have those ballistics results from the Oliver case you requested." Suddenly, Nygma brightened. "Someone must really like you, Detective."

"And why do you say that?"

Nygma angled his pen toward the jelly doughnut. "This pastry is from Sunrise Bakery as evidenced by the signature yellow napkin – they make _the_ best doughnuts in the city. They aren't cheap either."

Harvey glanced down at the perfect doughnut and cheery yellow napkin again. Guilt bubbled in his gut. "No kidding." He reached down and picked the doughnut up, wrapping it in the napkin, before handing it to Nygma. "Be my guest." Feeling like an a-one jerkoff wasn't conducive to Harvey's appetite.

Grinning from ear to ear, Nygma disappeared with doughnut in hand.

No sooner had the CSI departed than his partner ambled along up the stairs while looking at her cell phone. How she managed not to trip and fall on her ass was a mystery to him. She seemed down to Harvey and if could have kicked his own ass, he would have. He waited until Alcana rounded the corner and neared the desk before speaking.

"Hey Alcana, I wanted to thank you for the doughnut."

Her elegantly arched brows rose as she looked up from her phone. "What?"

Harvey cleared his throat. "The, uh, doughnut you left for me. I wanted to thank you. It was a nice gesture after my behavior this morning. Don't bother spending money at Sunrise Bakery; I'm good with that place down the street that churns out the greasy stuff."

Alcana pocketed her phone and shook her head. "I didn't buy a jelly doughnut for you. I haven't been to Sunrise Bakery in weeks. I just came back from lunch with my friend Kathy and we were nowhere near Fairmont Avenue."

"Uh-oh," Harvey breathed.

She frowned. "Is something wrong?"

He headed for Ed's lab. "I just gave that doughnut to Nygma. Sugared monkey balls! If you didn't leave me the damn doughnut, it's probably poisoned."

Bursting into the lab, Harvey made a dash for Nygma and slapped the other man's hand just as the kid was getting ready to take a bite of the confectionary. Ed stared at him in shock as the doughnut fell with a soft _plop_ onto the floor and promptly split open; spilling bright red jelly on the linoleum.

"Ed," Harvey grabbed him by the shoulders and started shaking the kid. "Tell me you didn't take a bite of that damn thing!"

Nygma looked dumbfounded. "No…" he sputtered. "I didn't get the chance. All you had to do was ask for it back."

Harvey rolled his eyes. "It's poisoned."

Nygma's ears turned red. "I suppose I owe you my gratitude."

"Who would want to poison you?" Alcana asked softly.

"There is a plethora of suspects, I assure you," Ed mumbled as he moved to scrape up the mess now decorating the floor.

Harvey didn't comment; he figured on the whole of things he probably deserved to suffer the sting of Ed's wit. He turned and observed his new partner. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was carefully watching Ed's every move as though enthralled.

"Ed's right, I'm not exactly Mr. Popularity." He shook his head. "Figure out what was in the damn thing and let me know."

"Will do," came Nygma's response as he continued scraping.

Alcana waited for Harvey to move by her before following him. She was painfully quiet all the way back to their desks. Taking a seat, she signed on to her terminal and started typing.

Harvey took off his hat and laid it on the far end of his desk. He watched her for several minutes before choosing to speak. "Alcana?"

"Yes?" She replied with her dark eyes still glued to her computer screen.

He sighed and drummed a finger against the blotter. "Will you look at me for a minute?"

Alcana stopped typing and finally turned her attention to him. She seemed withdrawn and different from the upbeat woman he met yesterday. The look of expectation on her face made apologizing even worse.

Harvey swallowed the knot in his throat. "I'm… uh…" he pulled at his tie as a serious case of the jitters hit him full force. "I'm sorry for being such a…"

"Jackass?" She supplied in an innocent tone.

He surged forward and wagged his forefinger in her direction. "That's completely uncalled for! I was going to say _rude_ person."

"That too," Alcana quipped before turning back to her computer screen.

Harvey sighed heavily. "Why didn't you just tell me about how we met? I pulled you out of a fire at your father's business. I spent the entire morning investigating how we could possibly know each other."

She abandoned her computer and sat back in her chair… _Gordon's_ chair. Alcana tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "I didn't realize I upset you with the teasing, Harvey. I'm sorry. I should have told you at lunch yesterday."

"Why didn't you?" He wondered if his reputation had scared her.

Alcana shrugged. "I thought it might be fun to have you guess is all. I'm surprised you recognized me even a little. The fire was a long time ago and I was only twelve. People change."

Harvey looked away from her. "It's your eyes –they didn't change." He had known those mocha-colored eyes the minute he saw them; the shape, the sweep of the lashes, and the color had been imprinted on him. He might not remember the circumstances clearly, but he had been convinced he had seen those eyes before.

A paperclip flicked him on the cheek. He turned to find Alcana wearing a small smile. "What the hell?"

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself," she picked up a file and tossed it on his desk. "Have you ever heard of a guy named Stewart Posey?"

Grateful for the distraction, he shoved on his reading glasses and started to skim the information. "Who hasn't heard of the prick? He's a child molester. I believe he was sentenced to forty years in Blackgate."

"Someone shanked him while you were out chasing your tail. Captain Essen wants us to investigate. It seems there have been some misdeeds at Blackgate with the prison guards."

"Lovely," he complained. "Just frickin' delightful."

Alcana smirked. "What shall we do, oh great leader?"

Harvey pointed at her. "Listen up, wiseass. First we are going to read this report thoroughly and then we're taking a road trip. Another thing – if you think I'm going to cut you any slack you are seriously mistaken. I saved you from a fire, but we don't know each other. Don't expect special treatment."

She saluted and he snorted in response.


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you for reviewing: red2013, Lana, Persephoniii, and pepperlandgrl

* * *

><p>The Posey case had been wrapped up before their shift ended. Posey had been shanked by another prisoner who proudly admitted to the whole thing. Had the guards at Blackgate possessed a better reputation for thorough investigating, GCPD homicide would never have caught the case.<p>

Bullock spent most of his time talking over her and pointing out every detail like she was a moron. By the time he drove them back to the station, Sonia wanted to bury her foot in his ass. He clearly wasn't joking about not cutting her any slack.

Sonia was determined to keep her job.

No matter what Bullock did, she was going to smile through it.

Kathy was curled up on the couch reading when Sonia walked through the door.

"Hey," Sonia greeted as she tossed her keys into the candy dish. "How was your day?"

Kathleen Duquesne was the assistant curator of the ritziest private art gallery in Gotham. She hailed from one of the richest families in the city and Sonia wasn't entirely sure why Kathy had stayed in Gotham after they graduated from college. Sonia had always figured Kathy would take off for Paris the minute she had her degree in hand.

The stunning blonde tossed her book aside and grinned broadly. "Magical, my day was simply _magical_."

Sonia pulled off her jacket. "Magical as in there was another exhibit of nymph statuary or that you met someone?"

Kathy was on her feet dancing around Sonia until the latter was dizzy. "His name is Pedro Solitez and he's the most handsome man I've ever met. Tall, dark… and the smile… you have no idea. He stopped by on his lunch to pick up a painting for his apartment. We talked about Picasso for ages."

Sonia personally found Picasso to be horribly overrated; in fact any art which caused Sonia to guess what she was seeing was overrated. Long ago, she learned to keep those thoughts to herself after expressing the sentiment and having Kathy ignore her for three weeks straight.

"Awesome," Sonia replied.

Kathy fell quiet and snorted. "Okay, what happened to you? Doom is on written on your brow and frankly I don't want to spend the evening in the dumps."

Sonia collapsed on her end of the couch and covered her face with her hands. "Trust me; you really don't want to know. _I_ don't even want to know."

Her hands were pulled away from her face and Kathy was seated on the coffee table wearing an eloquent expression of disgust. "Spill it – now."

Taking a deep breath, Sonia told Kathy everything about the last two days of her life. Every painful interaction with Bullock was expelled for her friend to analyze. Sonia was so angry she was sputtering off words she didn't normally use like a backfiring car.

To her credit, Kathy was silent until the bitter end. No interruptions, no _'oh poor you'_, and no put upon sighs such as Sonia's mother would have given her. Kathy merely listened; her bright blue eyes keen to every word.

Sonia's angry diatribe finally reached a conclusion and she sat with her arms crossed; hands jabbed in her armpits.

"Is this the same Bullock that pulled you out of the fire?" Kathy asked.

Sonia nodded.

"Hero worship clearly sucks," Kathy pursed her lips and whistled. "He sounds like a swell guy. Look, he may have been a peach when you were twelve but people change, Sonia. This Bullock character sounds like a hard nut, he probably has had to be in your line of work. You should have been forthright about where you met right off the bat, but the damage is done. Give him a chance to calm down. If he's still a dickhead in two weeks, report him to your captain."

"I don't want to report him," Sonia sighed. "I just want him to act like I'm his equal."

Kathy smirked. "But you're not his equal – you're new. Nine years of patrol under your belt isn't the same as over ten years' experience in homicide and you know it."

She grimaced. "Yeah, but it sucks to be a newbie."

"I had Mrs. Winters over me for six years, you remember her?"

Sonia recalled a woman dripping in priceless jewelry and designer clothes with a mouth like a shriveled prune. "The lady obsessed with displaying those black and white bondage photos. I remember her."

Kathy frowned. "God, I wish I could forget those pictures. Revolting." She shuddered delicately before recovering. "My point is that I had to take Mrs. Winters crap the entire six years we worked together. I was her assistant and other than my college degree, I knew absolute _shit_ about the art world. As much as I despised that old fart, she taught me a great deal. We all go through garbage on the job and you'll just have to buck up."

"When I started on patrol there were a few pranks, but my partner was welcoming. Bullock is just tolerating me." Sonia shook her head.

"Keep a smile on your face and just push through," Kathy urged. "He'll either lighten up or stay a dickhead, but at least you won't sink to his level."

Sonia released a sigh. "Tell me about Pedro. I need vicarious pleasure since my life isn't providing any."

Kathy grinned and curled up beside her. "He's gorgeous."

"Is he rich?"

"His family owns South America."

Sonia had a genuine laugh for the first time that night.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Sonia arrived at her desk just as her shift started. She noticed Bullock was nowhere in sight and shrugged; hanging her jacket on the back of her chair. Just as she signed onto her computer, Sonia had the eerie sensation someone was staring her down. She froze and her eyes slid to the right only to encounter a tall, skinny man with dark hair and glasses dressed in a grey lab coat.<p>

She smiled and rested a hand over her rapidly beating heart. "Good morning," Sonia offered cheerfully. "You're from CSI, right?"

He grinned broadly and nodded. "Edward Nygma and you are Detective Bullock's new partner."

Sonia nodded. "Detective Sonia Alcana." She held out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Nygma."

Edward Nygma stared at her hand like it was a serpent ready to strike. Finally, he reached out and gave a quick shake before releasing her immediately. "You can call me Edward or Ed if you prefer." He looked around pointedly. "I take it that Detective Bullock is running late per usual."

"So it seems," she agreed easily. "What can I do for you, Ed?"

He handed her a report. "Thank goodness Detective Bullock knocked that doughnut out of my hand. It was laced with senna and cascara sagrada – a rather large dose by the way – and whoever ate that pastry would be been indisposed the majority of the day. I'm much too busy for such a fate."

Sonia began reading and raised one eyebrow. "Senna and cascara sagrada as in…"

"A natural laxative," Ed offered helpfully.

She fought against the smile threatening to break over her face. "So Bullock would have been glued to the crapper all day?"

Ed's ears reddened. "Essentially, yes. You seem rather pleased by the thought."

"No," Sonia's denial came out as a high, thin near laugh and she had to clear her throat. "No, I just think we have a practical joker in our midst."

Ed stared at her as though shocked. "But poisoning someone isn't funny."

The visual of Harvey Bullock stranded in the john was both horrifying and hysterical. Sonia had once dosed her stepfather's slice of chocolate chess pie with Ex-lax after he grounded her for coming home fifteen minutes late. It had been so wrong, yet felt so right – Sonia had laughed for days after the incident. She had been fifteen and vindictive and while she never regretted the move; it was not something Sonia would ever do as an adult.

"No," she agreed easily. "You're correct – this incident isn't funny at all. Can you review yesterday's security tapes? I would really appreciate the help."

To her surprise, Ed smiled broadly. "I'd be happy to look over the security footage. Are you fond of riddles, Detective Alcana?"

"You can call me Sonia," she replied. "Uh, I like riddles, but I'm not so great at solving them."

Ed looked like he was to speak but promptly closed his mouth once more.

"Alcana!" Captain Essen called as she came striding out of her office with a note in her hand. "Where is Bullock?"

Sonia shrugged. "I don't know, ma'am."

Essen pinched the bridge of her nose. "Here," she shoved the note at Sonia. "We have a report of a dead body at this address. Uniforms have the crime scene secured and there is apparently a witness on scene. I'll call Bullock and let him know you're on the way."

"Yes ma'am." Sonia looked at the address and frowned. "Ed, can I catch a ride with you?"

He seemed taken aback by the request. "Sure… come with me."

Sonia shook her head. People weren't even safe in the city parks.

* * *

><p>The scene was chaotic. Griffin Park was not the largest in Gotham, but it was one of the nicest. Lovely large trees provided shade during the summer and the plantings of flowers and shrubs were so renowned that people had chosen to marry in the park due to the incredible beauty of the place.<p>

Several uniformed officers held back a significant crowd of onlookers and confined them beyond the yellow tape.

The first officer Sonia ran into was her former superior, Lieutenant Moser. He was waiting behind the tape and met her with a large smile. "Alcana, I didn't think we'd be meeting again so soon. How do you like the new job?"

She shrugged and grinned. "So far, so good, Will. I really can't complain."

"I wouldn't listen anyhow," he retorted teasingly. "Where is your partner?"

Sonia pulled out a pocket notebook and a pen. "I haven't a clue, but he'll be here. What have we got?"

Moser led her to a large group of manicured bushes. His smile dropped and he shook his head. "This is pretty bad. I hate responding and finding a kid."

"Shit," she breathed. "How old?"

"Twelve to fourteen in my estimate," Moser replied as he pointed toward the bushes. "I've had my fill so please excuse my absence."

Sonia nodded and began weaving her way through the bushes. She reached a tiny clearing that revealed a scene that gagged her. Pressing a hand over her mouth, Sonia turned away and tightly closed her eyes. "Oh my god."

Counting to ten and sucking in huge, heaving breaths settled her stomach but not Sonia's mind.

Forcing her eyes open, Sonia stood frozen; physically unable to move a muscle. Not ten steps behind her was the body of a young adolescent boy splayed on the dying grass. He was fully dressed but missing his shoes. The back of his head was caved in – blood and brain matter spattered widely over the area.

Sonia had seen dead children before as a cop: two in car accidents and a toddler who died after choking to death on a French fry. Those deaths had been horrible enough, but to see a young life that was _deliberately_ snuffed out was like a sucker punch to the gut.

The bushes rattled and Sonia steeled herself.

Ed Nygma emerged with his field kit. His sharp, dark eyes took her in before gliding to the body on the ground. He cleared his throat and set down his kit. "Oh dear me. Are you all right, Detective?"

Sonia nodded briskly. "Yeah, I'm fine, Ed. While you are processing the evidence, I'm going to speak with the witness."

Ed was silent as he slipped on a pair of latex gloves.

She forced her way back through the brush until she emerged into the clear. Wiping a hand over her mouth, she marched straight to Moser. "Will, can you point out the witness?"

The older man led her to a police car on the perimeter of the grass, far from the crowd, and opened the back door of the cruiser. A little girl no older than five was sitting on the back seat kicking her legs and sucking her thumb. She was chunky with wild blonde hair plaited in pigtails. Large, frightened blue eyes looked at Sonia even as the little girl tried to slide her rear against the seat and move away from the open door.

Intense pity swamped Sonia. She turned to Moser. "Did she say anything?"

"Not one word. We figure she was with the victim because she was hiding behind a tree a couple yards from the crime scene," he replied.

Sonia nodded. "Thanks Will. I'm going to try and talk to her while Nygma is processing the evidence."

Moser simply nodded and moved back toward the scene.

She took a deep breath and crouched near the opening of the door. Smiling, she addressed the little girl in a soft voice. "Hello, sweetheart. My name is Sonia and I'm a policewoman. Can I talk to you?"

The little girl looked in Sonia's direction, but kept sucking her thumb.

"Would you like to see my badge?" Most children in Sonia's experience were fascinated with police badges – boys and girls alike.

The thumb was removed from her rosebud mouth and the child nodded wordlessly.

Sonia moved slowly and pulled the badge from the clip at her waist before leaning into the car and setting it on the seat. She moved back so as not to crowd the girl.

The little girl crept just far enough to grasp the badge in her small, pudgy hands. She stared at Sonia's shield before blinking and looking her in the face. "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

"That's a good thing," Sonia assured her. "But I'm not just any stranger; I'm a police officer so it's okay to talk to me. You won't get in trouble."

"Okay," the girl whispered.

Sonia smiled again; her face hurting from struggling to maintain a calm, reassuring expression. "What's your name?"

"Lily."

"Lily is a pretty name," Sonia complimented.

"Thank you," Lily said. "Is Nathan coming back?"

Sonia felt a moment of exultation. "Who is Nathan, Lily?"

Lily stared at Sonia's badge; running her thumbs over the number in a repeating pattern. "Nathan is my brother."

Sonia wanted to cry, she wanted to vomit, but she couldn't. "Did Nathan go in the bushes?"

Lily nodded somberly.

"Okay, did you see someone else go in the bushes?"

"The bad man," Lily whispered with wide, fearful eyes.

"Do you know the bad man?"

Lily shook her head. "No. Nathan knew him; he was scared of the bad man."

Sonia nodded thoughtfully. "If you saw the bad man would you recognize him?"

"No," Lily said. "He was wearing a big hat and a really long coat… like a boogeyman."

Sonia felt her heart breaking for the kid. "What's your last name, Lily?"

"McGeorge," Lily replied.

Cold spread over Sonia's skin. "Is your father Francis McGeorge?"

Lily nodded.

_Shit… shitty, shit, shit!_ Sonia swore vehemently and silently. Francis McGeorge was a prominent member of the city council and one of the richest men in Gotham. She had to tell Captain Essen.

"Alcana!" Bullock's voice cut above the surrounding din. "What are you doing?" He was pounding toward her over the grass like a mad bull wearing a frown so intense it was scary.

Sonia stood and flashed a reassuring smile at Lily. "I'm going to close the car door for a minute, I'll be right back." The little girl nodded and Sonia closed the door before going to meet her partner.

"Sorry," she stated. "I was talking to our witness."

He glanced around and shook his head. "You are supposed to be with the body until I arrived. Great Caesar's Ghost! Do I have to spell out the basics?"

Sonia felt her cheeks grow warm. "Ed was processing the scene. I wanted to see if our witness could give us any information."

Bullock stared her down. "The next time you stay with the body. What did you find out?"

"We have problems, big ones," she stepped closer to him and lowered her voice. "The witness is a five year old and she saw the assailant but described him as wearing a large hat and long coat; I doubt she got a look at his face. It gets worse."

He wiped a hand over his mouth. "We have a dead twelve year old and a five year old witness who can't identify the perp. How much worse can it get?"

Sonia hugged herself. "The victim and the witness are Nathan and Lily McGeorge."

Bullock's already pale face turned an alarming shade of white. "Please tell me you're jerking my chain."

"No," she answered. "I'm being perfectly serious. Those are Councilman McGeorge's children."

He swore viciously and colorfully before finally regaining control. Bullock nodded and let his eyes pass over the onlookers and uniforms before drifting back to her. "This has the potential to be as big a mess as the Wayne case. We can't afford to screw this up or the Mayor will have both our asses. You understand?"

Sonia nodded.

Bullock pulled out his phone. "Time for damage control, Alcana." He hit a number and waited. "Cap, we have a problem. Potentially huge." Bullock paused. "The dead body in Griffin Park is Councilman McGeorge's son." He listened for a long moment and nodded before hanging up.

"Essen wants the lid hammered down on this – tight." Bullock jerked his thumb toward the police car where Lily sat. "You get McGeorge's daughter back to the precinct and straight into Essen's office. Don't call Juvenile Services; don't answer any calls unless it's my number or Essen's."

Sonia nodded. "Okay, I'll get a uniform to drive us."

Bullock's brow creased. "No detours. Whoever did this wasn't fooling around. I don't believe for a second it was some stiff that wanted the kid's shoes. I think this was a message."

"Using a twelve year old?"

He grunted. "Less than two months ago some whack job was killing councilmen left and right; even stuffed one in a barrel and lit the poor sap up like a yule log. I wouldn't put it past anyone to drive home a point by splitting a kid's skull."

Sonia remembered reading about the murders of the two councilmen before the vote on Arkham. "Isn't McGeorge Mayor James friend?"

"Best friend if rumors are true," Bullock looked ill. "The Mayor's going to be on the friggin' war path. Get out of here with the kid. I'll stay and make sure the victim's body makes it to the medical examiner's office without incident. Damn reporters get a whiff of this mess and our asses will be on the hot seat."

Sonia nodded and headed for the patrol car and Lily.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks Persephoniii, red2013, pepperlandgrl, and Lana for taking the time to review.

* * *

><p>Essen quickly closed the door behind Sonia and Lily before ushering them toward the chairs. "Did you see any reporters on your way here?"<p>

The younger woman shook her head. "No ma'am. I think Harvey might have more issues on scene with photographers."

Picking the little girl up, Essen placed her in a chair and bent down beside her. "Hi sweetheart, I'm Captain Essen. Are you thirsty?"

Lily nodded and started swinging her legs rapidly. "Do you have hot chocolate?"

"I'll get you some," Essen promised before leading Sonia back toward the door. "I sent Alvarez to notify Councilman McGeorge and his wife – he's always been very good with the notifications. Sonia, Mayor James is on his way down here, I'm expecting him momentarily. James can be a royal prick. I need you to keep your mouth shut. Can you do that?"

Sonia gave a slow nod. "Yes, of course. Why don't you let me get Lily's hot chocolate. It will probably be better if Mayor James speaks to you."

"Thanks," Essen opened the door and let her out.

Heading straight for the break room, Sonia rifled through the cabinets with shaky hands. She had never been good with big shots and a furious mayor was the last person she wanted to deal with. "Damn it all to hell."

"Whatya lookin for?" A snappy male voice asked.

She turned to find Detective Colton pouring himself a cup of coffee. He was a short, rotund man not much older than her with a black buzz cut and sharp green eyes. Colton was quiet for the most part and had a reputation in homicide of being a hard worker. He pulled more overtime than his partner, Alvarez.

"Hot chocolate," she breathed.

Colton passed her by and flipped open a lower cabinet to reveal a toaster and several boxes of hot cocoa mix. "There you go. Dealing with kids is always the worst."

Sonia pulled out a packet and set about making Lily's hot chocolate. "Yeah, I never thought it would be this bad."

He grunted and sipped his coffee. "How you like dealing with Bullock?"

She shrugged. "He's okay."

"Really?" Colton laughed; a deep, pleasant sound. "The way he treated Gordon, I figure he's a real prick. I didn't care for the _High and Mighty_ Jim Gordon neither, but Bullock was relentless in busting the guy's chops. Alvarez, I'll take him any day of the week over Bullock."

Sonia finished stirring the cocoa. "I can't speak ill of my partner, he's been just fine."

"Aside from the flying doughnut," Colton volunteered with a smirk.

She chuckled. "It was a cronut and yeah, aside from that, it's been great."

Colton shrugged. "I hope for your sake he stays that way. Ain't nothing worse than coming in here only to get your ass chaffed because your partner is feeling pissy."

Sonia smiled and waved goodbye to Colton as she carried the cup to Essen's office. To her relief, Harvey was occupying the other chair. Mayor James and the McGeorge's hadn't arrived yet. She let herself in and caught the tail end of the conversation.

"… no other witnesses. I have not a clue as to why this kid dragged his sister out so early in the morning to Griffin Park."

Essen was listening with a thoughtful expression before she smiled at Lily. "Do you know why your brother wanted to visit the park?"

Lily was quiet a moment. "Nathan always visited the park. He liked the trees."

Sonia closed the door behind her and crouched beside the little girl's chair. "Hey Lily, here's the hot chocolate."

"Thank you," Lily piped before reaching out to take the mug in hand.

Leaning close to the child, Sonia smiled at her. "It's really hot so make sure you blow." She pursed her lips and blew onto the surface of the drink. "I don't want you to burn your lips."

Lily obediently followed Sonia's example and blew several times before sipping the rich brown liquid.

Sonia stood and brushed her hand over the child's hair. "How is it going?"

"Not good," Harvey answered quietly but with an angry frown that spoke eloquently of his true feelings. "We have bupkes and the mayor is going to rip us a new…"

"Thank you, Harvey, for the recap." Essen's dark eyes darted to the child before settling back on his face. "I think we are going to need to ask some tough questions of the family. I'll be happy to explain that to the mayor."

Sonia heard a commotion in the squad room but didn't turn to look Essen's office windows. "I suppose that would be him."

"Oh yes," Essen breathed.

The door flew open and bounced off the wall with a crack. "Captain Essen, your people _will_ find the sicko who did this or you're all fired!"

Sonia turned and pointed to Lily.

Aubrey James was a tall, large man in his late fifties with normally kind features and sharp, dark eyes. He always wore the best suits and smiled for the camera with an ease that Sonia knew in her gut to be false. Today his face was marked with a ferocious frown and his dark eyes blazed angrily; his face a deep brick red.

The minute James saw Lily; he drew a deep breath and wiped a hand over his face. It was as though his personality switched back to the mild mannered, kind man Sonia saw at press conferences.

He managed a smile as Lily turned in his direction.

"Are you here to take me home, Uncle Aubrey?"

To Sonia's everlasting shock, James had tears in his eyes as he crossed the room to the little girl. She grabbed the cup from Lily's hand and scrambled back as Mayor James picked the child up and hugged her tightly.

"No, honey, but your mom and dad will be here really soon," he assured Lily softly. "I understand you were a very brave girl today."

Lily was hanging on to the mayor's neck like it was a life preserver and she was drowning. "Not really. I hid when Nathan was in trouble."

He kissed the side of her face. "Don't you worry about that, Lily. Nathan wouldn't have wanted you to get hurt."

Sonia stood just in time to see a couple in their early forties rush into the room with Alvarez standing awkwardly behind them. The pair was both golden-haired with blue eyes; handsome and well dressed. The woman surged forward and gently scooped Lily from Mayor James arms before burying her tear-stained face in the child's neck and crooning to the little girl.

Francis McGeorge murmured against his wife's ear as she nodded. He waited patiently until she strode from the room under Alvarez's care. The look on the man's face was grief mixed with rage. "Aubrey, Captain Essen, I need to know that the man who killed my son is going to be caught."

Mayor James reached out and squeezed his friend's shoulder. "Francis, I promise you everything that can be done will be." He looked over at Harvey who had long since stood up. "Detective Bullock is the senior officer assigned to the investigation and he helped find the man who murdered Thomas and Martha Wayne."

McGeorge turned in Harvey's direction. "I want this piece of garbage found."

Harvey nodded. "We will find the person who killed your son, but we need some information from you and your wife."

"What sort of information?" McGeorge asked tiredly.

Harvey hesitated a moment. "Lily saw the man who killed Nathan, but he was wearing a hat that blocked his face." His deep blue eyes slid in Alcana's direction. "What was the full description, Alcana?"

She swallowed tightly as all eyes in the room landed on her. "A tall, thin man wearing a large hat and a long coat was the assailant. Lily didn't see the man's face due to the hat."

"Do you know anyone who fits this general description?" Harvey asked.

McGeorge shook his head. "No, I don't."

Harvey nodded and folded his arms over his chest. "Have you received any threats against you or your family?"

The councilman snorted. "Are you kidding? I work in public service! Of course I've been threatened; it's a hazard of being on the city council in Gotham."

"Does Susan keep a record of the crazies?" Mayor James prodded softly.

McGeorge nodded. "Yes, she keeps an extensive record of any threats that have been lodged."

Essen frowned. "We'll send our CSI technician to pick up the evidence immediately. I'm sorry to have to ask this, Councilman, but can you think of anyone who might want to hurt your son?"

"No," McGeorge almost shouted; his face almost purple. "Nathan was a good boy. He didn't make enemies. People loved him."

Harvey cleared his throat. "Do you know why Nathan would be walking with Lily in the park at seven in the morning? I'm assuming they both have school."

Sonia felt her stomach gurgle and her heart ache for the clearly grieving man. She blinked back tears as he struggled to answer; the mayor's hand still on McGeorge's shoulder.

Francis McGeorge started to cry. He covered his face with both hands.

Sonia watched Harvey carefully.

He turned away from the scene for a moment; shaking his head. A vein was throbbing in his temple and his blue eyes were hard when he looked back at the councilman. "Mr. McGeorge, please, any help gets us a step closer to finding the animal that did this to your boy." Harvey had a warm voice by nature and it was imbued with sincerity.

McGeorge finally gained control and turned swollen red eyes on Bullock. "As you know, we live around the corner from the park. Nathan wanted to become a botanist when he grew up. He walked every morning in Griffin Park before school. Normally, Olivia goes with Nathan and Lily but she was under the weather this morning." He started to weep. "I shouldn't have let Nathan go."

Mayor James shook his head and stared at Harvey and then Captain Essen in turn. "Take care of this…" He put an arm around McGeorge's shoulders and helped his friend out the door.

The minute the door to Essen's office was shut she looked at each detective hard. "I'll send Ed to retrieve the threatening materials from Councilman McGeorge's assistant. I want you two to discreetly look into Francis McGeorge's background and his wife as well. Keep a lid on the investigation and get this bastard."

"What if the investigation leads to certain individuals?" Harvey asked quietly.

She frowned. "You know how it works. We can't have any more incidents like we did with Gordon. Find the killer and keep your noses out of politics."

He nodded. "We're on it. Come on, Alcana, time to take a little ride."

Sonia followed in silence.

* * *

><p>"What did you mean by the investigation leading to <em>certain individuals<em>?"

Harvey steered the car through traffic. "I'm going to be straight with you, Alcana, and save myself the grief I went through with Gordon. There are certain individuals who are untouchable in this city – period, end of story. Do yourself a favor and get with the program early."

Sonia bit her lower lip as she watched the man beside her. There had been rumors for years that the higher up the food chain you were in the mob – or any variation therein – the less likely GCPD was to touch you. She had seen perps who should have been collared walk away from busts unscathed. Being a uniform meant you had no say in cases.

"Are you saying high level mobsters have GCPD protection?"

He shot a dark look in her direction. "You wearing a wire for the feds?"

"I'm not a snitch, thank you very much," Sonia shot back. "I just want to know what the hell I'm dealing with here."

"You have to play along to get along," Harvey returned. "Everyone does it and there's no shifting the way this city operates. Keep that in mind – just in case you start developing a hero complex or any crazy ideas on how you can change things."

She rested her head against the passenger side window and watched the city roll past them. "Is that what happened with Gordon? He developed a hero complex?"

Harvey sighed and steered the car onto a side street. "I sorta like Gordon. He's a good guy, but Gordon is a boy scout and it bit him on the ass. Learn to roll with the punches, kiddo, and you'll be a lot better off. I would hate to see you end up at Arkham with Gordon."

Sonia waited until Harvey parked the car before looking in his direction. He was staring at her with intensity and it made her nervous. "I'm not a girl scout if you're worried."

A muffled grunt escaped his throat. "We'll see soon enough what cloth you're cut from, Alcana." He emerged from the car. "Come on, I need to talk to a source and I'll introduce you. Remember, be nice. _Please._ I have enough problems with this broad as is."

She followed him from the car toward an older building that didn't seem all that special. Located smack dab in the red-light entertainment district of Gotham and surrounded by other businesses that almost made Sonia blush to see. A neon fish represented in bones glowed in the window close to the doors.

Harvey held open the door and waited for her to enter.

She glided by and found herself in a classy nightclub standing near the bar. Harvey ambled by her with seeming nonchalance as he headed toward the tables arranged in front of a good-sized stage; not too small and not too large, intimate.

A tall thick man with a snazzy suit and smiling face blocked Harvey's way. He tilted his head and studied Harvey like he was covered in mud. The smile he wore seemed dark to Sonia, biting and not in the least bit welcoming.

She felt a tingle travel up her spine and slid her hand into her jacket…

"Harvey, you're back like a bad penny. You know Fish isn't thrilled with you." He snorted; his eyes directly on Harvey. "Better tell your partner to stop reaching for her gun or this conversation is going to end up in a very unfriendly place."

"Cool down," Harvey tossed over his shoulder before turning to face the man blocking him. "Butch, tell Fish this is important or I wouldn't be here."

_Butch_ glowered at Harvey before turning his bright blue gaze on Sonia. He nodded his head at her. "Is this Gordon's replacement?"

"Yeah," Harvey allowed. "Alcana stop lingering like a bad smell and get up here."

Sonia, hands on her hips, strode across the room until she was standing a few paces from her partner's back. "Hey." The greeting was light, but Sonia allowed a little disgust to bleed through. She didn't like this Butch character staring at her like a juicy sirloin.

Butch merely grinned. "Hey back." He turned his attention to Harvey. "So is this a social call or business?"

"Councilman McGeorge's son was murdered in Griffin Park this morning. I'm sure Don Falcone would appreciate her full cooperation and of course, _I_ certainly will."

"I'll see if Fish can spare a few minutes." To Sonia's everlasting horror, Butch winked at her before ducking up a flight of stairs.

Harvey turned and watched her carefully. "Keep it zipped when Fish gets here and for the _love_ of Pete - don't insult the woman." The near pleading and half order in his voice set her teeth on edge.

"Consider it zipped," Sonia replied.

A few minutes passed in silence before a beautiful African American woman dressed to the nines in a copper sequined gown sashayed down the stairs followed by the frowning Butch. She had large cat-like eyes of a stunning hazel shade and fashionably short ebony hair liberally laced with fuchsia along the fringe.

She was petite and despite the stunning length of her heels; barely reached Harvey's shoulder. "Harvey, dear man, I thought we had an understanding," she chastised in a carefully accented, deeply intelligent voice. "First Bruce Wayne's Englishman and now you come into my establishment dragging some sorry ass wetback trash. If I didn't like you…" she wagged a finger sporting a long, claw-like scarlet nail.

Sonia was almost snapping her teeth off as she ground her jaw in the vain effort to keep from speaking. Muscles screamed and various insults floated through her mind that she dearly wanted to let fly.

Harvey didn't seem a bit phased. "Have you heard any chatter about what happened in the park this morning? I know news spreads like wildfire and you have the best sources, Fish. I would be _very_ appreciative for any help."

Fish smirked up at him; the expression almost a sneer. "I imagine you would be. Mayor James must be up in arms and probably up your captain's sweet backside."

"That would be the gist of it."

She played with his tie for a moment before her feline gaze fell on Sonia. Abandoning her plaything for more fertile amusement, Fish crossed the distance and circled Sonia lazily. "Is this your new partner, Harvey?"

He sighed and rested his hands on his hips. "Yeah, she sure is. Detective Sonia Alcana, meet Fish Mooney, the proprietor of this lovely establishment."

"You're about the same age as Gordon," Fish purred before reaching out and capturing a dark curl; twisting it around her finger. "But you seem so much younger… fresher. I hope you have more intelligence than James Gordon did. We all have to get along." She released the curl and took a step back to study Sonia more closely. "What's the matter, _Sonia_? Cat got your tongue?"

Sonia simply smiled – a forced, ugly thing that lacked any honest decency.

Harvey rolled his eyes in response and shook his head.

Fish chuckled and returned to Harvey's side. "My dear, you certainly inherit all the misfits, but at least this one doesn't think she's a saint – I have a sixth sense for people. I haven't heard a peep about McGeorge's son, but we both know the guilty parties never stay silent for long. I'll give you a call when I hear anything useful."

Harvey took Fish's hand and kissed it. "Thank you, Fish."

"Um-hmm," The woman murmured with a grin.

Harvey turned on his heel, grabbed Sonia by the elbow, and marched them both outside.

He was silent as the grave all the way back to the car. Only once they were inside did he talk. "You could have smiled like a normal person instead of a psychopath, Alcana. We lucked out Fish was in a good mood."

"You told me not to say anything," Alcana shot back as she shoved on her seat belt.

"I didn't tell you to stare down Fish Mooney!" He ripped off his hat and shoved a hand through his hair. "We need to get back and talk with the medical examiner."

She drew in a deep breath and expelled it viciously through her nostrils.

Harvey stared at her; his hand shoving the key into the ignition. "Is there something you would like to say?"

Sonia shook her head. "No."

He didn't hesitate and got the car started; gliding into traffic and throwing his attention into driving.


End file.
